GANT RELOAD: Week of July 21

The GantDaily.com weekly reload gives readers a look back upon the most noteworthy stories of their work week. It contains the big headlines, as well as a few stories you might have missed. It might even include a story or two of the lighter side.

The GantDaily.com reload will be posted each weekend for your perusal. For most part, the reload will be filled with local headlines, but every now and again, a state, world or national story will make the list.

CLEARFIELD – After a special preliminary hearing Monday morning at the Clearfield County Courthouse, Magisterial District Judge James Hawkins returned all charges to court against a state prison inmate who has been accused in the murder of his cellmate.

Lawrence Edward Peterson Jr., 44, of Easton and an inmate at the State Correctional Institution at Houtzdale, has been charged with criminal homicide; first-degree murder; third-degree murder; aggravated assault; involuntary manslaughter; and recklessly endangering another person.

CLEARFIELD – Clearfield Borough and Lawrence Township police have teamed up with several other agencies to offer a seminar on robbery. Robbery is defined as “the crime of taking or attempting to take something of value by force or threat of force or by putting the victim in fear.”

“Many businesses have been victims of robbery and unfortunately many more businesses will fall victim to this crime,” police said. “We hope to address the concerns of local businesses, merchants and the banking community as it relates to dealing with robbery at the seminar.”

CLEARFIELD – The Clearfield Revitalization Corp. (CRC) has been accredited as a 2014 National Main Street Program for meeting the revitalization performance standards set by the National Trust Main Street Center.

“Receiving National Main Street Accreditation is a prestigious designation and the CRC wishes to congratulate the Clearfield community for this achievement and for its continued support of our program,” said Heather Bozovich, Main Street manager.

HYDE – At last night’s meeting, the Clearfield school board approved an elementary playgrounds project at the Clearfield Area Elementary School and natatorium improvements at the Clearfield Area Junior-Senior High School.

DEP unprepared in 2009; now understaffed, underfunded and inconsistent

HARRISBURG – Auditor General Eugene DePasquale today said that a recent audit shows that the meteoric growth of the shale gas industry caught the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) unprepared to effectively administer laws and regulations to protect drinking water and unable to efficiently respond to citizen complaints.

Washington, DC, United States (4E) – U.S. and European airlines suspended flights to Israel on Tuesday after a rocket hit a home near Tel Aviv’s international airport.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered a 24-hour ban on flights to Israel citing that the rocket struck just a mile away from the Ben Gurion International Airport. Reports from Israel said the rocket fired from Gaza hit and damaged a home in the city of Yehud Tuesday morning.

DUBOIS – The federal Department of Transportation has selected Silver Airways to provide commercial air service from the DuBois Regional Airport to Washington’s Dulles International Airport, according to Robert W. Shaffer, airport manager.

Silver is affiliated with United Airlines and will fly a 34-seat Saab 340B+ aircraft on three, round-trips daily Monday through Friday. Silver will also fly three weekend round-trips, said Shaffer.

CLEARFIELD – Yesterday, the Clearfield County Commissioners approved applying for a $5,000 mini-grant through the Susquehanna Greenway program for 95 water mile markers for the West Branch of the Susquehanna River.

Since January, the county’s Emergency Management Agency has been called out on five water rescues/searches. The searches involved approximately 20 people, including one fatality, along the river, said Lisa Kovalick, community development specialist.

HYDE – At Monday night’s meeting, Bruce Nicolls, director of curriculum and instruction, presented “very preliminary” Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) results to the Clearfield school board.

Students at Bradford Township Elementary were 89 percent proficient in math and 70 percent proficient in reading. These scores, Nicolls said, were a little higher in math but a little lower in reading as compared to past years.

HARRISBURG — The Auditor General’s Office has released the Special Audit of DEP’s Performance in Monitoring Potential Impact to Water Quality from Shale Gas Development for the period 2009 through 2012, finding no instances where DEP failed to protect public health, safety or the environment with respect to unconventional gas drilling activities.

The audit report encompasses the period of Jan. 1, 2009 through Dec. 31, 2012 and focuses largely on DEP’s management of electronic data with respect to water supply complaint investigations.

MIDDLETOWN — Pennsylvania moved ahead with steps to make travel more efficient today as the Pennsylvania Turnpike activated its 70 miles per hour speed limit from Blue Mountain (Interchange 201) to Morgantown (Interchange 298) and PennDOT announced it will launch 70 miles per hour pilot projects on a pair of interstates next month.

WASHINGTON, D.C. –U.S. Rep. Glenn ‘GT’ Thompson (PA-5) has released the following statement on House passage of H.R. 3136, theAdvancing Competency-Based Education Demonstration Project Act, and H.R. 4983, the Strengthening Transparency in Higher Education Act. Both measures passed the House with bipartisan support.

DuBOIS – A homeless man who ran from police waived his right to a preliminary hearing during Centralized Court.

Louis V. Porrett, 26, is charged with flight to avoid apprehension, fleeing or attempting to elude police, criminal mischief, recklessly endangering another person and several summaries. His bail was lowered from $50,000 monetary to $50,000 unsecured.

PHILIPSBURG – Approximately 200 adult and youth volunteers from across the country will be arriving at the Philipsburg-Osceola High School on Sunday to participate in the Philipsburg Group Workcamp 2014.

The Workcamp is scheduled for Monday through Friday of next week. It will provide free home repairs through the Group Workcamps Foundation program. This is the fourth time that Central Pennsylvania Community Action (CPCA) has co-sponsored Group Workcamp.